Significance of Ethanol Blending with Petrol
- It will promote using renewable fuels instead of the fossil fuels we use in our day-to-day lives. This will also help reduce fossil fuel stress, enabling a healthy environment.
- Carbon emissions will also be reduced as ethanol has high oxygen content, which helps it combust more than normal fossil fuels. Proper combustion will lead to reduced carbon emissions from vehicles.
- As ethanol will be procured from domestic sources, it will reduce the import of fuels from other countries, which will help to boost the local economy.
- This will also help farmers to earn extra income as the raw material required to produce ethanol will be procured from the farmers.
- According to research, the fuel efficiency of the vehicles will also increase by 6-7% for 4-wheelers and 3-4% for two-wheelers which will also help people to save money.
- It must also be noted that vehicle manufacturers need not make significant changes to their product assembly lines, which will also benefit them in terms of money and effort.
Ethanol Blended Petrol (EBP) Program
Ethanol Blended Petrol Programme (EBP) is an initiative by the Government of India (GoI) under the National Policy on Biofuels. It was launched in the year 2003. It aims to promote renewable energy, reduce the import of fuels from other countries, and promote the use of environment-friendly fuels.
The government aims to mix 5% ethanol in fuel by 2020, which will increase by 20% (E20) by 2030. Ethanol needed to be blended will be sourced from domestic sources and at prices fixed by the government. This initiative will impact various sectors, including agriculture, environment, energy, etc. It will also help the farmers to earn extra income as the ethanol will be produced as a side product from Sugarcane, Maize, Bajra, Fruit and Vegetable wastes, etc.